Arizona weekly citizen., 1887-03-05
MARKET OF MEXICO.
SUNDAY MORNING ON THE HIGH WAYS LEADING TO THE CITY

] The Gathering at the Market Plae.
 What May be Bought There-The Fla, ing Stands-LePers and Beggars-y.
 rious Strange sights.
 Sunday in place of being a day of req
 Is the chief working day in the week i,
 all the markets of the republic Indee,
 it IS said that the beasts of burden know
 when Sunday comes by the extra apnOun
 Of work required of them Then it ia tb,
 haciendCdO starts his drOves and bring,
 his various products from the distant
 ranches so as Co reach the Sunday market
 The scene on Sunday morning on tbe
 highways leading into the city is enliven.
 ing.
 Hundreds of pack mules and burros.
 loaded with hay, corn. wood. charcoal and 1 bGtchcrs' supplies are hurried on by the l peou muleterOs. There are Ionx trains of ] cumbersome, two wheeled carts fitted with
 yats for pulque and others with goat skins
 oi pulque. The ranchero is bringing mn
 the Tear. He is mounted on fine horse
 and carries a lassO, sword and pistol bv
 his sile, and usually wears pair of fancy
 leather pantalOOns with couple of row, | oi silver buckles on the seam from tbe | pockets tO the shoe tops. Then along the ! pathway on either side of the road We see many Indians and ineStizos. or half l breeds, hurrying on in jog trot under l loads of fruit, vegetables, earthenware. Dullrush mats, baskets of eggs, butter clahber cheese and cOOps of chickens. etc
 Others are leading haitered pigs, lambs.
 goats and cows. The women are usually
 shoeless and hatless. and in addition to
 their burden of produce most of them
 carry Q baby on top of the load. Whole families plOd on in this style for fifty or
 seNenty-lVe miles with load of produce
 that VIII not sell for more than s or S4.
 most oi which they will spend for pulque anu heseai before they leave the city, vet they VIII return home after a weeks trip Jus' as happy as If they had laid up the whole amount for old age.
 SIGHTS IS TIE MARKETS.
 The articles seen irs the market will here give as they were written down dur Ing recent sunday morning visit. One department IS under cover and is filled with assorted fruits. including oranges. lemons Hines pineapples, pears, peaches, piuiils' bananas quinces, alligator pears, cocoahuts and many other tropical fruits. most oi which, owing to the high market taN ana costly transportation, sell at about New 1Ork prices. The streets and side walks in the vicinity are lined with men women and children. who are seated o1 the ground surrounded by their market products, which include. beside the or,ii- nary vegetable market products. parrots. pigeons, unweaned puppies. game chick ems pet lambs, haltered pigs and kids. Then there are heaps of O!d iron. bird | cages, cheap calico. brass jewelry. boiled | corn, potatoes, stewed pumpkins, beans | pepper, cooked and raw pigs feet. sheen | heads, hearts, lights and entrails. There I ure also Hints and finder for starting, fires metal mounted stone for grinding corn roots, bark and medical herbs and dye woods
 Close by we see fried shrimps and grass hoppers- each are cooked whole and eaten So. The latter are about the size of our common CIa-sEJppor. but are entirely ged, but as Co looks [ would just as soon try Co go the common hopper of the north. Besides these the natives gather the eggs Of the swamp fly and boil them l into paste and ea; them with salt. chiH | pepper and tOrtillas. The fiy and it's eggs are each sold in the market. The former Is somewhat smaller than the house fly. while the eggs are about the size and color of a hay seed In fact k eaten here that the human stomach will digest or anything that is capable of being converted into soup.
 A MOTLEY MIXTURE.
 Passing on we see women selling flow PTS, incense, gum, cane and corn stalks. cigarettes, cigar stumps, pulque, stale bread, bullrush mats. second hand coml- and tooth brushes, Aztec images of gods. sacred images and pictures, hot soup. ice ,ream, toy collins, candy skulls. prayer books, wax imnges, hairless bluish poodle logs, cakes made for the dead, also others made in the form of the cruciflx. the Virgin, saints and angels
 Among this motley mixture there are to ie seen babies half naked and babies com iit,ely naked running at large In fact !. numerous entire families of Mexican citi- ei- come and spend aA day iu the mar .et place. hi, is their home and they -1ally bring all their domestic animals .-ol- The market presents a continued | .IlHlc, as every veSler keeps up % con talr cry, which he gives in spanish li sometimes in the Aztec or native ndan dialect, the kind, quality and price q all he has Co sell.
 Each stand has pole about eight feet .l-l. upon the top of which there is a flat covered with bullrush mat. This Is the only protection from sun and ain. and under such shelter We find the I-b and soup stands. In these popular a,l- stands every article of food that -i.l not scald or burn is dished out by and, for other things they use large -ooden and brass spoons While not therwise engaged these women are hunt lg hcas among their poodle dogs and uppies and combing the children $ heads n lr what they seldom fail to find Then there are scores of lepers and beg ars sleeping and lOunging about gather [ lE the vermin from their filthy rags. ome of them a-e playing lame while 'hers are covered with sores which they l. linredly exhibit, but more often in place sores are layers of acquired filth. Thus ith as few rags as the law will permit nd as much filth as they can live under Iese heggars crowd the market place, lufrOnt every class of visitors and expect be paid for tn exhibition they present here are a..O many other phases of life nong the lowly common. sights every ny, but for the sake of prOpriety and l scency are not spoken of.-MexicO Cor etrOit Free Press.